


Life in Color

by Rachello344



Category: Death Note
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Death Note, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, only after meeting your soulmate do you get to see in color
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-16
Updated: 2016-01-16
Packaged: 2018-05-14 06:44:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5733403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rachello344/pseuds/Rachello344
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Light had a lot of expectations for his first meeting with the legendary detective, L.  None of them involved how very strange the man was, nor the way he literally filled Light's world with color.  Of all the people who could have been his soul mate, L was certainly... unexpected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Life in Color

**Author's Note:**

> Written on tumblr for the prompt: "soulmate au where l and light are delighted to find that they actually HAVE a soulmate (they never rly expected that, given the kind of ppl they are) but then learn that the other person pisses them off and learning to work w/ that."
> 
> I'm pretty proud of how this came out, so I thought I'd post it here as well.

Light adjusted his jacket for the third time since stepping into his father’s office.  He was going to be introduced to the consultant that would be joining them for the foreseeable future.  As one of their leading detectives—and the youngest—he was going to be tasked with showing the consultant around, among other things.

Light was, admittedly, a little annoyed that his father thought they _needed_ a consultant.  He was more than good enough for the case at hand.  However, the rumor going around was that this consultant was _the_ best detective in the world.  If that was true, Light was more than willing to play nice.

Light was particularly interested in whether or not the man had met his soul mate.  Being unable to see colors was, as far as Light was concerned, his only major weak point.  Although, it did keep people from asking after his romantic life and lack thereof.  If this World’s Greatest Detective could see in color, then it was entirely possible he could do a better job than Light.  Otherwise, it was also possible they were evenly matched.

Light adjusted his jacket again, looking through his files on the case they’d be working, trying to ignore his strange bout of nerves.  He was calm, cool, and in control.  Everything was fine.

After a brisk knock, the office door opened, admitting a young man with hair sticking up like feathers and dark, tired eyes.  As those eyes settled on his, Light was overwhelmed as what he assumed must be color bled into everything around him.

Light and the newcomer gasped in unison.

“Light, have you met him before?”

“No, Father.”  Light stared and stared.  The man’s sweater was white, and his pants were… a color.  The fabric was denim, so he suspected they were blue.  His hair and eyes were black, and his skin was very pale, leaving Light feeling as if he may as well still be seeing in grayscale.

His father’s hair, on the other hand, allowed Light to recognize the color brown, matching the desk and chairs.

“What color is your tie?” the newcomer asked, head tilting.

Soichiro froze.  “My…  You don’t know what color this is?”

“Obviously not, or I wouldn’t bother asking.”

Light liked the man’s voice, but thought his attitude could use some work.

“I’d also like to know,” Light said.  “Along with the main color of that painting.  I like it.”

“The…  My tie is green, and the painting is primarily red.  Are the two of you…?”

“Soul mates?  That does seem to be the case, doesn’t it?” the man bit his thumb nail, glancing between Light and his father with interest.  “My name is L, as you may have gathered.  Yagami Soichiro, it’s a pleasure to meet you in person.  Yagami Light, well met.  I hope we get along.”

“Likewise,” Light said.

“While I’d like to continue admiring the colors, I do believe we have work to do.  So, tell me about the case.  I have the basic information already, but many of the details could not be shared online.”

Light appreciated the return to business and straightened up, explaining the case details briskly.  By the end of the meeting, Light was tasked with showing L around the station and introducing him, as well as taking him to the crime scene.

“And lunch,” Soichiro added.  “The two of you should take some time to talk in private before the day’s out.”

“Of course,” Light and L said together.

With that, Light proceeded with the tour and introductions.  L occasionally asked questions, mainly about their coworkers and a few of the rooms they would be using.  Light was a little curious about his introducing himself as Ryuuzaki, but he kept his questions to himself.

“Have you met your soul mate yet, Ryuuzaki?” Matsuda led with as usual.  Light sighed.

“Don’t mind him.  He asks every person he meets.”

L considered Light for a long moment as if trying to parse whether or not Light wanted him to own up to being his soul mate.  Light really didn’t want to deal with it today.

“I haven’t yet.”

Apparently his feelings showed on his face.  Thank God.  Matsuda was insufferable with people who just discovered color.  Because he and his soul mate were _so in love_ , he assumed everyone must fall for their soul mate at first sight.

Yeah, right.

* * *

“You don’t seem happy.”  L poked at his cake curiously, eyes drifting between the cake and Light’s face periodically.  L’s knees were against his chest, his feet resting on his chair like a child.

“It’s probably just a headache.  The color is… a lot to take in all at once.”  It also probably had something to do with how childish his soul mate was.  It was infuriating.  He was undeniably brilliant, but the eccentricities were _grating_.  Light was not a particularly patient person, especially not where others were concerned.

“I’m sure that’s it.  It doesn’t explain why you keep glaring at me when you think I’m not looking, though.”

“You’re right.  The way you’re sitting has more to do with that than the colors.  Aside from that, you’re the easiest thing to look at right now.”

When L looked up, his lips were parted around his surprise.  His dark eyes grew wider, but everything about him was muted and grayscale.  His pants were the only spot of color, and Light was coming to realize that blue was an easy color to look at.

The more Light’s eyes caught on the circles beneath L’s, the more he wanted to make him _sleep_.  Light felt exhausted just looking at him.

Forcing himself to focus, Light said, “Why did you introduce yourself as Ryuuzaki earlier?”

“I don’t tell my name to people I don’t trust.”

Light’s cheeks felt warm.  “You trust me?”

“Your father gained my trust the last time I worked with him, and he told me I could place my faith in you.  I reserved the right to decide, but I agreed.  It felt like the right thing to do.”  L took another bite of cake, eyes drifting away.

“Because I’m apparently your soul mate?”

“Hardly.  I trust my instincts, and my instincts say I can trust you.  Seeing in color had nothing to do with my assessment.”  L glanced around the café and took in the different colors on display.  “I’m not disappointed, though.  I wondered if I was one of those without a soul mate, but it seems there is someone for me after all.”

Light sipped his tea.  “I’m still reserving judgment, but…  I didn’t think I’d find someone who could match me, either.  Mostly I’m relieved you aren’t a woman.  That would have been more difficult to deal with.”

“Really?  A woman would be more trouble than I’m likely to be?” L’s smile was small and teasing.  Light liked it.

“Oh, yes.  There would be a lot to explain.  The reason I never want anything to do with her, for example.”

L stifled a laugh and ducked his head.  He bit his lip, but Light could still hear the small giggle that escaped.  “I can see how that would be a problem.  Speaking of, we still need to get to the bottom of the disappearing murder weapons.”

“Then let’s get to work.”

The ease with which they shifted personal to professional was unlike anything Light had ever experienced before.  Once L started working, there were no interruptions to deal with further personal matters.  There were no interruptions at all, actually.  They worked together seamlessly until lunch ended.  Even as they walked back, they continued discussing the case in a code L frequently used.

When Light figured out how it worked and began using it himself without having it explained, L looked impressed.  Light had to fight back the urge to preen under his attention.  He was not a child.

* * *

By the time they closed the case, Light and L were involved in four physical altercations: one started by Light, one by L, one in which they both launched at each other at once, and one with the criminal they were chasing.  Matsuda was forced to break up the first three fights, and the last ended with the criminal in handcuffs.

Light was still panting, annoyed that L seemed only his usual level of rumpled.  It figured that the first time someone else got involved, Light would be facing the brunt of it.  Whenever he caught L looking at him, the man looked pleased for some reason.  The weight of his eyes was like a physical touch.  It was driving Light slowly insane.

Light wasn’t sure what he wanted, but punching him would probably be a good start.

When they were finally allowed to leave for the day, they fell into step together with a practiced ease.  An ease that suggested they’d known each other much longer than a few short weeks.

“My father said normally you leave after the case is closed,” Light heard himself say.  He tried not to notice how disappointed he sounded.

“That is my usual M.O., but these aren’t exactly usual circumstances.”  L wasn’t looking at him, but he was smiling however faintly.  “I’d rather not leave right away when I’ve only just met my soul mate.  If you’d like me to leave, I will.”

“I’d like you to stay,” Light said.  “I didn’t really notice, but everything was boring before you got here.  I’ve never cared enough about anything to get into a fight before.”

“You’re the first person I’ve been interested in, too.”

“So where does this leave us?”

“Well, I’m off the clock and still have a few days before I’ll need to check out of my hotel room…  I’ll need to find a new place to live at some point during that time if I’m going to stay.”

“What are you suggesting?” Light narrowed his eyes and felt playful for the first time in a long time.

L smirked at him.  “Would you like to order room service with me?”

* * *

They didn’t order room service.

* * *

Light considered the way the sun fell across L’s shoulders as he hunched over his laptop.  He was making arrangements, though he hadn’t gone into much detail.  Light didn’t really mind, content to trace his gaze over the curve of his spine.

The other colors in the room still got to be a little overwhelming at times, but the soft gold of the sun on the pale skin of L’s back was easy on the eyes.  He liked red in as bold a shade as he could find, but he was developing an appreciation for the blues L liked to surround himself with.  The dark black of his hair and eyes contrasted sharply with the blue glow of his monitor.

Even in living grayscale, L carried more sheer vitality than any person Light had ever met.  L made _Light_ feel alive, more than anyone else had.

“You should move in with me,” Light decided.

L glanced over his shoulder, raising a single eyebrow.  “Three days was enough to decide?”

“One day was enough.  You dropped your persona for me,” Light said before L could make some joke about his apparent sexual prowess.  “Your guard was up in front of everyone, but you dropped it for me.  I know how much that means coming from you.”

“And you think three days was enough for me to decide?”

“You chose today for check-out, but you have no alternative housing lined up.  You haven’t been on a single housing site all weekend.”  Light smirked.  “You made your decision when you invited me to your room.  Am I wrong?”

L closed his laptop, draping himself over Light and stretching out like a cat.  Light ran his fingers through L’s hair.  He sighed at the soft feel of it coupled with the press of L’s lips against his cheek.

“You’re right,” L breathed against Light’s neck.  “And I would be delighted to move in with you.  I should warn you, though, it’s very likely we’ll still fight from time to time.”

“Good.  You can be _infuriating_ , but I enjoyed every fight we had after I’d finally cooled off.”  Light tilted his head back as L brushed his lips over the side, making him shiver.

“Maybe we should practice self defense together, fight each other to let off steam…”

“It would be my genuine pleasure,” Light said, voice catching on a gasp as L nipped at his throat.

“I bet I can think of another _genuine pleasure_.”

Light was startled into a laugh.  He rolled them over and kissed L long and easy, grinning into it.  Light was eager to start a life with his soul mate, a rocky and eventful life—the furthest thing from boring Light could imagine.  His next laugh was sheer _joy_.


End file.
